If we're to be honest, most of us have a musical comfort zone. Whether it's Chicago or Texas, old-time country or uptown swing, there's a certain groove that's as comfortable and as reliable as favourite old sweater.
But every once in a while a disc comes along that shakes things up, one that proves challenging yet too fascinating to ignore. Welcome to The Legend of Shorty Brown, the debut disc from California's Blue Eyed Devils . . .
The story goes that the Devil's passed Jimbo Mathus a demo during an informal backstage meeting; two months later the boys were on their way to North Carolina for the three days in which they wrestled this project into life.
Musical magic is a fleeting thing. Yet as the disc's liner notes put it, something special happened when the Devils gathered in Mathus' rough-hewn studios, and with the help of peach brandy and blistering heat worthy of their namesake, came up with a set that borders on brilliance, albeit of a very ragged sort.
Guitarist/vocalist Chris Cotton, bassist Brett Klynn, drummer Justin Markovits (who also contributes washboard) and harmonicist/vocalist Brendan Wheatley take a loose, jam-band approach to the eleven originals on "Shorty Brown." Instrumentation is almost all-acoustic, with Mr. Klynn's bass the only instrument occasionally plugged in; the feel is country blues, but there's something almost post-modern in the Devils' cheerful deconstructions of traditional structures and themes. Still, there's little here to offend purists. It's just that the Devils' insist on creating new blues for modern times, and the results, raucously boozy and righteously loose, are both like and unlike any blues you've ever heard before.
Instrumental performances are fine if rarely spectacular, though Mr. Wheatley's harmonica work is worthy of mention; as a rule a little harp goes a long way, but Wheatley manages to provide rhythmic support throughout while remaining unobtrusive. And Markovits has a seemingly instinctive feel for that sort of junkyard drumming that gives this music its irresistible rhythm. Both Cotton and Wheatley are good vocalists who rise to unexpected heights; sure they're tongue-in-cheek, but the rugged harmonies on the disc's closer, "Trouble," rival those of the Holmes Brothers.
While a healthy respect for tradition is essential to any roots-based music, it should never become an impediment. What's come before, the music that forms the foundation of the blues, has been done definitively time and again. Thank goodness for bands like The Blue Eyed Devils who are determined to see it grow, as it should, to reflect our times, our lives.
Highly recommended!
Montainview Records
801 W. El CaminoReal #201
Mountain View, Ca 94040
Web: www.theblueseyeddevils.com
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